Miami Heat Fans Feel Chris Paul’s Anguish Toward Referee Scott Foster

Golden State Warriors guard was ejected in the second quarter against the Phoenix Suns.

Veteran guard Chris Paul and NBA referee Scott Foster have a long history between each other.

The latest chapter was the Warriors’ Wednesday night loss to the Phoenix Suns, when Foster ejected Paul with two technical fouls at the end of the first half.

“It’s personal,” Paul said in the postgame interview. “We had a situation some years ago, and now it’s personal. The league, everybody knows, it’s been a meeting and all that…I’m okay with a ref saying whatever, just don’t use a tech to get your point across.”

Miami Heat fans can share Paul’s level of frustration with Foster, as evidenced by their 4-12 record when he officiated Heat games the last two seasons. Some recent instances were in the postseason against the New York Knicks, where Miami was frequently penalized or poorly officiated in the Knicks’ favor.

Foster is generally held in low regard amongst most of the league’s fans, especially on social media.

But Heat fans and Paul have especially felt the effects of his officiating. There's something to be said about conspiracy theories and jokes, but their lackluster records against Foster implicate the possibility of officiating negatively impacting game outcomes.

Heat fans took the Twitter nearly every time foster was announced as the referee of one of their games.

Hopefully, Paul and Golden State can regroup in preparation for their Friday night matchup with the San Antonio Spurs (3-12). They're searching for victory after losing seven of their last eight games.

Jayden Armant is a contributor to Inside the Heat. He is a student at Howard University. He can be reached at or follow him on Twitter @jaydenarmant.

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